Loader



Sept. 1l, i923.

F. N. WILSON LOADER Filed Jan. 18 1922 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept l, 1923. AW

F. N. WILSON LOADER Filed Jan. 18 1922 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Sept. il, E923. A@

F. N. WILSON LOADER Filed Jan. 18 1922 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 vPatented Sept. 1i, 1923.

narran stares FRNK N. WILSON, 0F ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

LOADER.

Application led January 18, 15h22. Serial No. 530,183.

To all ic/0m t may concern Be it known that I, FRANK N. WILSON, a citizen of the United States, residing in the ycity of St. Louis and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Loaders, of which the following is a s ecication.

1N y invention relates to loaders, and, more particularly to coal loaders adapted for use in coal mines, although not necessarily limited thereto, as the cevice is applicable for conveying many other materials, as will be apparent hereinafter, and, the invention is a distinct and practical improvement to overcome certain practical objections to, and defects in, loaders now elnployed for like purposes.

The objects of my present invention are rst, to provide a loader which will be capable of working in a very low head room in a mine; second, to provide a loader which can be adjusted to change the inclination thereof; third, to provide a loader which is swung from a pivot point to permit the gathering of coal from a large area in front and on either side of a track upon which the loader travels; fourth, to provide means located at the forward end of the loader for tearing down and gathering coal, or other material, into a pile directly in front of the loader; fifth, to provide means for conveying the coal which is gathered and piled in front of the loader to car, wagon or pile to the rear of the loader, and, sixth, to provide mechanism for actuating the gathering means and the conveying means in unison.

lV ith the above and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel features of construction, arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter more fully described and nally pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

Referring to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification wherein like characters of reference denote similar parts throughout the several views:

Fig. 1, is a plan view of a loader constrncted in accordance with my invention.

Fig. 2, is a side elevation thereof.

Fig. 3, is a rear end elevation of the conveyor portion of the loader.

Fig. 4, -is a. top plan view of the forward end of the loader, clearly showing the arms for tearing down and gathering the coal into a pile to be moved by the endlessconveyors.

Referring to the drawings, the reference character 1 designates rails constituting a track and 2 represents a car or vehicle to be loaded with coal in the room of a coal mine, while 3 indica-tes the roof of the room and 4 the coal for delivery to the cars within the mine.

In carrying out the aim of my present invention I employ a suitable truck 5 having the wheels 6 which are mounted to ride upon the rails 1. The forward end of the truck 5 is provided with a curved rail 7 adapted to act in the capacity of a path wheel. This rail 7 extends a suitable distance beyond either side of the truck 5, as shown in Fig. 1.A Freely and slidably mounted upon the rail T is a suitable base 8 which is capable of movement in an arcuate path due to the fact that the rear central portion of the base 8 is pivotally supported by means of a suitable pivot shaft 9, which shaft is fixed to the base 8 and extends upwardly therefrom, as shown in Fig. 2.

The reference character 10 indicates the bed plate of a suit-able conveying mechanism, which has connection at the rear portion thereof with the swinging base 8 by means of suitable supporting arms 11 having adjustable connect-ion with the arms 12 of the base. The arms 11 are preferably slotted and held at any desired elevation by means of a suitable fastener 13. The rear arms 11 and 12 are shorter than the forward arms 11 and 12, as shown, so as to permit the conveyor bed plate 10 to be adjusted to the desired inclination and elevation, as is manifest. The forward end of the bed plate 10 is provided with a detachable tread plate 14. the forward edge of which is adapted to rest upon the floor of the mine room when the conveyor mechanism is in operative position, as shown in Fig. 2.

15 indicates a pair of opposed, suitable 'spaced conveyor chains' which ride over the front and rear sprockets 16 and 17, respectively. and provide a coal slide or passage 18 between the conveyor chains and upon the bed plate 10. Each endless conveyor' chain 15 is provided with a suitable number of spaced conveyor arms 19, which are suitably tixed to the conveyor chains 15. rlhe `ower, or front sprockets 16, which are idlers, are supported by means of the shafts 20 which are suitaby fixed to and supported by the tread plate 14. The upper or rear sprockets 17 are fixed to the shafts 21 which pass through the bearings 22. The lower end of each shaft 21 is provided with a bevel gear 23 which meshes with apinion- 24 fixed to the transverse shaft 25 supported bymeans of the bearings 26 which are'xed to the conveyor bed plate 10, as shown in Fig. 3. A suitable worm gear 27 is fixed midway the ends of the shaft 25 and meshes with a' suitable worm 28 fixed to a drive shaft 29 which is connected with the armature shaft 30 of a suitable electric motor 31 by means of a suitable universal joint 32. The drive shaft 29 is journaled in the bearing 33 and the motor is suitably fixed to the bed plate 10. 34 indicates a pair of suitable guardv plates for ythe conveyor chains and arms, while 35 designates a suitable chute at the upper or rear end of the bed plate 10 for guiding the coal into cars, wagons,'or other suitablevehicles, depending, of course, as to whether the device is being used in a coa-l mine,l coal yard, or other place.

To obviate the necessity of employing1 laborers to gather and place the coal in aconvenient pile in front of the conveying mechanism, I employ a pair of suitable gathering arms 36 which are pivotally connected, as at 37 to a plate or disc 38, one

of which is fixed to each front sprocketv supporting shaft 20, as clearly shown in Fig. 4. Each arm is pivoted a short dis tance from its forward end, as shown. Pivotally connected, as at 39 to the forward end of each arm 36 is an extension 40 havingjts forward end suitably curved and sharpened, as at 41. 42 indicates aback spring to permit the extension arms 40 to yield under a strain or heavy load, so as not to break the gathering arms, as is manifest. The rear end of each gathering arm 36 is provided with a .longitudinal slot or passage 43 for the recept-ion of a stationary guide pin 44 so as to impart a sweeping motion to the forward free end of the gathering arms as the plate, or disc rotates to which the arms are pivoted. The pivot pin 37 travels in a circular path'or orbit as the disc revolves. thereby imparting the desired sweeping, or gathering movement to the arms tearing down the coal in their path and gathering it into a pile in advance of the conveyor mechanism so that the conveyor arms in their path of travel can scoop the coal upon the bed plate and convey it upward thereupon to be discharged at the rear end of the conveyor into a car or other vehicle, as is manifest.

It is apparent from Fig. 4, of the drawing, that the free ends of the gathering arms move in an oval `path thus tearing down the mined coal in their path and moving or sweeping. it into a pile between the arms in the path of 4the conveyor arms in advance of the tread plate 10.

It is also apparent from the foregoing description and illustrations, that the device may be swung in an arcuate pathY so as to tear down and gather coal in a. larger radius of space in advance of the machine.

It is evident from the foregoin description of my present invention, t at .it is practicable in places where the head room is low, owing to the fact that the elevation and inclination of the conveying section of the loader may be adjusted to meet the conditions as they exist, especially when used in a coal mine where head room is low and limited.

The many advantages of the herein described invention will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art to which it appe'rtains.

I do not desire to be understood as limiting myself to the exact details of construction and arrangement as herein described and illustrated, as it is manifest that variations and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention and the.- terms of the following claims, hence I wish it to be understood that I reserve the .right to make any such changes, or modifications as may fairly fall within the scope of the appended claims when fairly construed.

What I claim is:

1. In a machine of the type set forth, a substantially vertical shaft, a horizontally rotary member on the shaft, an endless conveyor engage-d over said member, gathering arms, and means mounted on the shaft, and connected to the arms to actuate the latter.

2. In a machine of the type set forth, an endless conveyor, a rotary member over which the conveyor engages, gathering means, means to operate the gathering means, and a common mounting for the rotary member and for said operating means of the gathering means.

3. In a machine of the type set forth, an endless conveyor, a rotary member over which the conveyor engages, gathering means, means to operate the gathering means, and a common shaft upon which the lrotary member andthe operating means of 

